Representative John Boehner was reelected as Speaker of the House this week, surviving a challenge from the far right as the 114th U.S. Congress, with Republican leadership in both Houses, began its work.

I've come to believe that even if there was agreement in the U.S. that climate is a key concern, we would do a poor job of addressing the problem. Adversarial solutions will not suffice -- we must learn to hold the tensions of our differences and use this tension to inspire solutions that are better than we have yet imagined.

Americans blame the media for creating a level of incivility that is undermining their faith in journalism and deepening our nation's political dysfunction. The Civility in America 2013 survey found that 70 percent of Americans believe incivility has reached crisis proportions.

I don't expect very much from Santa Claus these days. I mean, he's been a disappointment over the years. My desires are few--power, money, and fame, that sort of thing--but he's yet to satisfy any of them. So I tried downgrading my requests to world peace and the end of international poverty. But that didn't work either. He still didn't deliver. This year I tried to be more realistic. I had just a few simple requests. It's been a difficult year so Santa, this would have been a good time to give me at least something that I wanted. But no! It's Christmas Day and I got up early to check under the tree, and nothing.

Though it has become popular in our culture for people of influence to project supreme confidence, speak in dismissive tones and dominate the "conversation," Jewish tradition teaches that there are "seven traits that characterize a cultivated individual" -- they all have to do with how we communicate.

For most people, civility translates to quieter, measured and (one hopes) thoughtful discussion (vs. the raised voices and uncomfortable feelings we associated with what we've come to think of as uncivil behavior).

I'm not sure what happens in other states, but here, it goes beyond radio and television. At a party last weekend, the tunes on Pandora were interspersed with messages about the importance of somebody's China policy.

If you hate my opinion, fine. If I hate your opinion, fine. But for goodness sake, have your own opinion. And back it up. Otherwise, it's just flapping lips and air. And it hurts everything it touches, including America.

Hate-mongering in any form is not a permissible political strategy. There must be a consensus among both Republicans and Democrats that the demonization of the President of the United States, or anyone else for that matter, will be neither tolerated nor rewarded.

It's the ubiquity of incivility that makes it matter. I'm pretty sure ceaseless exposure to examples of us being simply mean to one another has a detrimental effect on our own psyches and our communities.

Political civility is not about being polite to each other. It's about reclaiming the power of "We the People" to come together, debate the common good and call American democracy back to its highest values amid our differences.

Rush Limbaugh's remarks about Sandra Fluke, following her respectful and sincere testimony, can only be described as misogynistic, vitriolic, and a misrepresentation of the position of our student. In our vibrant and diverse society, there always are important differences that need to be debated, with strong and legitimate beliefs held on all sides of challenging issues. The greatest contribution of the American project is the recognition that together, we can rely on civil discourse to engage the tensions that characterize these difficult issues, and work towards resolutions that balance deeply held and different perspectives. We must return to the values that hold us together.

I've been thinking that journalists should add a "civility" beat to their shrinking offerings. At least they should give a little extra air or ink (literal and digital) to challenge politicians when they hit below the belt.

A political firestorm erupted in the tiny rural hamlet of Fancy Farm, Kentucky, last weekend when a scandalous speech delivered by Governor Steve Beshear received universal approbation from political insiders and the capital press corps.

Alright, you know each other. Now here are the rules: No hitting below the belt. The reason for this is that you will neither be happy nor particularly disposed toward being at all communicative on any level, let alone a civil one.